Como, Vinton, Sinatra among Pop Music HOF’s first inductees

Canonsburg Mayor David Rhome makes ’60s pop icon Johnny Tillotson an honorary board member of America’s Pop Music Hall of Fame during a press conference announcing the inaugural class at the Canonsburg McDonald’s.
Katie Green

The inaugural class of America’s Pop Music Hall of Fame was announced Friday at the Canonsburg McDonald’s. The 14 acts were narrowed down from 40 and chosen based on the breadth, depth and influence of their recordings with a world-wide online vote, with the criteria including that they must have had a hit prior to 1970.

Johnny Tillotson, early 1960s pop icon who stopped in town on his way to Wheeling, W.Va., to perform, announced the inductees. “I can’t tell you how nice it is to be here and make this announcement,” he said. “These are artists who have had a great impact on the American people.”

“This is a momentous day for Canonsburg – the process was not an easy one,” said Canonsburg Mayor David Rhome. “These 14 are what a hall of fame is about.”

The artists will be formally inducted during a ceremony on July 3 with a banquet at the Southpointe Hilton Garden Inn. The temporary home of America’s Pop Music Hall of Fame is set to open this fall on West Pike Street.

“The community has worked very hard, and still has a lot to do,” Rhome said.